House of Hades
by Naturegirlbella
Summary: Annabeth and Percy are in Tartarus, Gaea's taking over the world, and life stinks for demigods everywhere. My version of what will happen in HoH. Rated T, just to be safe. Enjoy!
1. I: Jason

_Author's Note: Hi! If you are reading this, it means,_

A. You are one of my extremely intelligent friends that have read MoA.

Or,

B. I decided to post this on FF.N and you are one of my first ever readers! Welcome!

_If you fall in to the first category, it means I'm asking you to beta. I want this to be a fan pleasing fan fiction, so constructive criticism would be appreciated._

_If you fall into the second, you don't know how honored I am to have you reading this! Please continue and leave comments with constructive criticism. Or just read. Whatever makes you happy. _

_Either way, enjoy my version of what will happen in HoH!_

**I**

**Jason**

As the ship flew away, Jason stared down at the gaping pit below. It didn't seem right to be leaving. Not when two of the bravest people he knew could be lying dead, just out of his reach. Blaming himself was+ inevitable. In fact, probably everyone on the Argo II was doing it, but Jason was oblivious to that. All he could think about were the millions of ways he could have saved them. If he had only been faster, flown down and grabbed Annabeth allowing Percy to be pulled up, signaled Leo to fly the ship over with a rope, something, maybe his friends wouldn't be stuck in Tartarus right now.

There was that word again; Tartarus. He wasn't even sure exactly what that place was. Without their walking encyclopedia (A.K.A. Annabeth) with them, most of the other demigods seemed pretty confused by the situation as well. One thing was clear, though; whatever Tartarus was, Jason was sure it wasn't filled with rainbows and butterflies. Just one look at their most recently acquired crew member, Nico DiAngelo, confirmed that.

His eyes were dark and hollow. Once tanned skin had paled to a paper-like white. His voice sounded like he hadn't had something to drink in months, and something made him question whether that was just an impression. Jason wanted to talk to him, wanted to ask what exactly made Tartarus so terrible, but something held him back.

At first, he believed he was simply doing it out of sympathy for the guy; surely he didn't want to talk about what he had gone through. Not after two of the three people that actually knew Nico just fell right back in there. Now, he started to suspect that he didn't want to know the answer. What was so terrible that a son of Hades who had seen pretty much everything couldn't face it?

Suddenly, someone saying his name shook him from his thoughts. "Jason! Dude, I'm sure that Mars can spare you long enough for you to give us lowly earthlings a hand with stuff."

Once he realized that Leo was speaking, he almost decided to ignore him. Leo never really had something important to say. Until it hit him; he was the leader now. He had spent weeks wishing that he could lead like he used to, prove that he was better than Percy, and here was his chance. This was exactly what he had secretly wanted. So why did it feel so wrong?

"Yeah, sorry, man. Just thinking about, you know, everything. What do you need?"

Leo gestured around him. "Take a look around! Nico needs medical attention, this place needs a major clean-up, we have no clue where we're going, and there's also the slight problem of getting the Athena Parthenos to wherever the heck that needs to go!"

Jason sighed. It was going to be a long day. "Hazel, Coach, you two take care of Nico. Leo, get us on water. Frank and Piper, you guys come with me to the Mess Hall. We need to figure out where we're going next."

As everyone set off to do their jobs, Jason headed toward the Mess Hall which was their unofficial headquarters. Leo had tried to rename it "The Red Zone" and make the infirmary the Mess Hall (They seemed to spend most of their time in there anyways.), but, surprisingly, there was a unanimous vote against it. Now, Jason kind of wished they had gone ahead with his idea. It would have brought a touch of humor into their currently depressing lives.

Frank and Piper followed him in, her hand intertwining with his own. They hadn't talked since the accident. They didn't need to. Jason also suspected that if Piper tried to talk about it, she would start crying, so it was probably for the best. He, honestly, didn't trust _himself_ not to start crying.

"So, we need a plan. That's obvious. Anyone have any ideas?"

Frank's forced cheery tone was met with a deafening silence. No one knew what needed to happen next. Finally, Piper spoke up.

"The Doors of Death are open. Until they are closed, not much can happen. That should be our next stop."

The Doors of Death… The Doors of Death… _And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death. _

"Wait! We can't go there next. We try to close them now, and we'll fail. _And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death._ That's what the prophecy says. In order for us to close them, we have to get the Romans on our side. Piper, send an IM to Camp Half-Blood! Frank, go tell Leo to steer us toward Camp! I'm going to go try to talk sense into Reyna one last time."

Piper's eyes flashed with pain at this last sentence. He honestly didn't get it. He was just going to talk to her. And, on top of that, it was a necessary step in getting Percy and Annabeth back. He knew that she must already know all that. So why was she still mad at him for leaving?

"Fine. I'll go grab a drachma and use the infirmary's sink. Talk to you later, Jason," She said stiffly, striding out of the room.

Frank shrugged and did the same. Jason could tell he wasn't happy about his orders, either, but was making much more of an effort to hide it. Was anyone happy with their jobs?

"I don't think they were ever this frustrated with Percy," Jason thought, still comparing himself to the son of Poseidon. Percy was everything he wanted to be; smart, funny, powerful, brave, the list goes on! He falls into Tartarus, and everyone wants to jump in after him. Could the same be said of Jason if the roles were reversed? These thoughts continued to race restlessly through his head as he headed to his bathroom in order to IM Reyna.


	2. II: Hazel

**II**

**Hazel**

For someone who had barely eaten for weeks, Nico sure weighed a lot. Hazel was forced to support him as they stumbled toward the infirmary. What really scared her was that he didn't protest. That wasn't like him. Normally, he would have immediately begun trying to help. Now, he just followed. Something terrible had happened to him in Tartarus. She knew he needed her help to work past it, but what were you supposed to do for that?

Coach Hedge had gone ahead to prepare everything, so it was just them in the hall way. Yet, if you had been there, you would have thought Hazel was walking alone. She was the only one that seemed to make even the slightest sound. The silence was deafening. She wanted to say something, anything, to break the barrier between them, but all she managed was, "Watch those steps. I don't want you to fall."

He responded with an almost imperceptible nod of his head, placing his hand against the wall for support. The stairs were easier than she had anticipated, but his arm never left her shoulder. They were nearing the infirmary where he would be staying. Sure, he could have taken Percy's room, but somehow that seemed wrong. To final, like they weren't coming back.

"Note to self: Never underestimate jars. They can be dangerous weapons if wielded correctly."

His voice startled her. It was deep and gravelly, but it was there. And he was trying to joke. Somehow, even the littlest things seem funny when the world is ending. Hazel couldn't suppress a giggle at his comment. She glanced up at him to see one corner of his mouth raised in a pained smirk that didn't meet his eyes. Hazel couldn't help but wonder, how long until those empty eyes shone again?

When they arrived, Coach Hedge was already prepared with Gatorade, mushrooms, and a combination of herbs that made Nico look green. It was almost a comical sight, really. Sitting in a pile were dried orange and yellow flowers, golden roots, sickly looking white flowers, and green, spear-like leaves, none of which looked particularly appetizing.

"I hope he doesn't expect me to eat that."

Hazel couldn't decide whether or not she should laugh. Coach normally didn't have them _eat_ the herbs he used for his so called "nature healing", but she couldn't say the teas tasted that great. Yet, she decided to watch Nico squirm for just a little while longer before putting him out of his misery.

Gleeson Hedge looked up from the roots he was pulverizing. "Sit down," he grunted, not exactly answering Nico's question.

His nervous expression cracked Hazel, and she decided to relieve him. "Don't worry. He might put them in a tea or something, but he never has anyone actually eat them."

Nico's face relaxed visibly, and Hazel was hit with guilt. Who was she to cause him more worry for her own amusement? He had been through a place that gods feared, and she was only adding to his problems. "I am sorry. I thought it would be funny."

Nico wrapped a thin arm around her, pulling her close. "You don't have to apologize, Hazel. It's not like you did anything wrong. I would do the same thing if it was someone else."

She was slightly relieved, but a little voice in the back of her head wondered if he was just saying that for her benefit. It would be just like Nico to try and gloss things over in order to make her feel better. Just then, Coach Hedge finished destroying the roots and started to dab the poultice onto several cuts and gashes along Nico's arms and legs. Nico seemed slightly uncomfortable with it all, but did his best to remain still all the same.

Suddenly, Piper strode in looked flustered. Hazel immediately wanted to run over and ask what was wrong, but respect for the other girl's privacy restrained her. Nico looked like he wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear, but Coach's glare held him in place.

"What are you up to, Piper," Hazel asked.

"I'm going to IM Camp. Catch them up on everything that is going on. We haven't updated them since we first left."

"What's our next move?"

"Leo should be steering us there as we speak. The prophecy says we won't be able to close the doors without the Roman. He's hoping that we can get a peace treaty that'll last long enough for us to defeat Gaea."

Hazel realized what a responsibility had been placed on Piper. She had been left to tell everyone that Percy had been found but then lost again to a place that only one was ever known to return from. "Do you want me to come?"

Piper nodded, and then her gaze flicked to Nico. He seemed to discern much more from that glance than Hazel, however, because he immediately attempted to rise. Of course, that wasn't really all that successful. Hazel and Piper both ran over to support him as he almost fell right back to the bed.

"You shouldn't be doing anything but napping and eating right now, kid! Sit the heck back down," Coach yelled, but Nico ignored him.

"Nico, what are you doing?"

"They need to hear it from me, Hazel. I'm familiar to them. They may not trust me, most people don't, but at least I'm not a stranger. Also… I've been there. I know what it's like. And I made it out. They need whatever hope they can get, and right now, I'm all there is."

Hazel wanted to scream. She wanted to stop it. She wanted to IM Camp herself. She wanted to do anything that might prevent Nico from having to admit to everything, especially in front of all those people. He hadn't been able to talk about it when Percy had questioned him. Now that he was gone, was it possible for Nico to pull himself together long enough to do it? Well, they were about to find out.


	3. III: Reyna

_Author's Note: I would like to dedicate this chapter to EllOhVeEe1997 as a thank you for a wonderful review. You made my day!_

**III**

**Reyna**

Reyna paced the floor of her hotel room, running her hands through her dark, wavy hair. No one ever saw her with it down. It was always pinned back in an intricate braid or something. But there was no one to see her now. Only her and her thoughts.

Jason was the focus of most of these thoughts. Why had he gone with the Greeks? One month away from Camp Jupiter, and suddenly he has a girlfriend, a new family, and a new home. What did the Greeks have that they didn't?

Though she tried to avoid thinking about it, she knew that was why she hadn't exactly stopped the attack on the Greeks yet. She wanted to destroy them, and when they were gone, Jason would come back to her. Or at least that's how it played out in her head. In reality, Jason would probably try to kill her, but she decided not to focus on that.

When a misty image started to materialize in front of her, she considered swiping her hand through it then and there. Only the bright blue eyes staring through it stopped her. _Jason…_

"Reyna! You look… Nice."

"Like it matters. Where's Piper?"

Reyna asked the question with taunting venom. When was this idiot going to make up his mind? He couldn't have both of them. If he wanted Piper, that was his loss. She only wished that he didn't.

"She's talking to Camp Half-Blood. It's not like we're together all the time."

"Of course you aren't Jason. You're never with anyone all the time."

"What?"

"Never mind! I don't imagine the purpose of this message was just a friendly chat, so what is it that you want?"

Jason looked hurt. Well, if he thought she was just going to welcome him with open arms, he was insane. He was the one that had gotten them into this mess in the first place. Then his expression hardened.

"I want you to stop this pointless attack on Camp Half-Blood."

"Didn't Lupa ever teach you manners, Jason? Your demanding nature is most unattractive. Try that sentence again."

"It would be really great if you could please, you know, avoid killing people and destroying thingies."

"Much better."

That's her little… _Shut up, Reyna! Don't think about that!_

"Look, I know the Romans are pressing for a battle, but it wasn't Leo's fault! He's the last person that would… You know what, that statement isn't entirely honest, but he didn't do it!"

Reyna almost gave Jason the pleasure of seeing her facepalm, but she caught herself at the last moment.

"What actually happened doesn't matter. What matters is what the Romans believe to have happened, and they believe that you are all hostiles. With Octavian keeping them riled up, there's nothing I can do. I'm truly sorry, Jason."

"No, you're not! If you were, you would be out there doing something about it, Reyna! I know you. When you want something to happen, it happens. You're kind of hard to say no to, especially when armed. So, if you really wanted to save Camp, it would be safe already. "

Reyna didn't know how to respond to this out burst. Yes, it was true, she wasn't doing everything, but how could he just call her out on it like that? Besides, it wasn't her fault, really. It wasn't her home. The people weren't her family.

"No, Jason. People can say no to me. You did it for Piper. Percy did it for Annabeth. Octavian does it all the time for himself. See? Everyone's willing to say no to me for the thing they care about most."

Jason looked like he was struggling not to laugh, which just infuriated Reyna even more.

"This isn't funny, Jason!"

"I know it's not, Reyna. The prophecy says we need to join together or we're all doomed. If you won't do it for me, do it for Camp Jupiter. If they participate in this war, we'll all die."

"I'll think about it."

And with that, she cut the connection.


	4. IV: Jason

_ Author's Note: Hey, guys! Sorry for the long wait. I wrote this a while ago, but it seemed to short, so I didn't want to post it. Anyways, I really don't like this chapter, but here it is. Enjoy!_

**IV**

**Jason**

Okay, she obviously wasn't happy. In fact, Jason might go as far as to say that Reyna was infuriated. So, maybe Jason had made some choices that she didn't exactly agree with, but that was his problem. What right did she have to chew him out? In fact, why did she even care?

Jason was starting to suspect there was something major that he was missing. Why was it that whenever he talked with Reyna, they ended up fighting? And whenever he went to talk to her, Piper got mad? Girls were much to complicated sometimes.

Pushing aside his questions, Jason went to find Leo. Frank had probably given him the directions by now. He had talked to the son of Hephaestus in a while, and Jason could use some stupid jokes after that conversation. Of course, talking to Leo wasn't ewguaranteed to be any help. He would probably end up saying something stupid that would somehow manage to make everything worse, but it was worth a shot!

When he found the other demigod, he was pacing the deck, murmuring something about "fortune cookies" and "evil, Chinese baby men" that made Jason wonder if the eiolons had come back. Then, Leo looked up, and Jason was sure it was him, not someone talking through his body. Those laughing eyes couldn't be faked. Even when he was frustrated or upset, Leo's eyes always had that mischievous glint to them. Now, it was there, same as always.

"Hey, man. What's up?"

"The sky, the clouds, the sun, the birds… You're the son of the Lord of the Sky! You should know all that!"

"Ha ha. Real funny. Okay, rephrase, how are you doing?"

"Me? I'm fine. Been enjoying myself talking to deformed dragons and eating breath mints, all the while feeling extremely productive. What about you, dude? You got Piper to kiss you yet?"

Jason punched him in the shoulder for the last question, but responded all the same with, "Not yet. She's made at me for something again."

"Ah, women are complicated creatures, Jason. You've got to learn to play them just right or they'll blow up like hydrazine and nitric acid, which, believe me, is not fun."

"And you have experience with this how?"

"You know I work with machines all day."

"And you know that's not what I meant."

"Hey, you never specified! Anyways, how are you really doing?"

"Honestly? Life sucks for everyone right now. 'Tis the life of a demigod."

"You got that right! Hey, so, what do you say we see who can shoot the most fish using the ballistae? Sounds like fun to me!"

"What?"

"Come on! I'll show you!"

"You know what I've noticed?"

"What?

"You are really good at taking things the wrong way."

"One of my many talents, Jason. No one will ever live up to Leo, Jack of all Trades!"

"You should have your own T.V. show. Now come on!"

"I can see it now!"

'What have I created?"


	5. V: Hazel

_Author's Note: Hey, guys! This is my Chrismas present to you all; a new chapter! I hope you enjoy. I hope that my description of Tartarus wasn't too detailed. I had a dream about it after reading the book, and the image kind of stuck with me (Imagine seeing all that instead of just reading it. It isn't fun!). Anyways, I really hope you guys like it. By the way, my longest chapter yet!_

**V**

**Hazel**

After they got to the sink, Piper turned on the tap. This was going to be a lot harder without Percy to manipulate the water into mist. When they finally got a good haze, it was because Hazel had thought of using a spray bottle used for cleaning. Getting the light was easy. They just borrowed a flashlight from the engine room. Leo wouldn't miss it… They hoped.

Piper held the drachma out to Nico. "You want to do the honors?"

He shrugged and accepted it, holding it delicately, like someone would hold a bomb. After fingering it for a few seconds, he threw it into the fog. "Oh, Iris, goddess of the rainbow, accept my offering."

The drachma disappeared through the mist. It seemed to shift into kind of a passage way, like it was catching it. Hazel had seen it a million times, but she still found it amazing every time it happened.

"Show us Camp Half-Blood."

The vapors began to swirl and shift so that Hazel could make out an image in front of her. Camp Half-Blood looked so cheery compared to Camp Jupiter. There, everything was about battle and power. Here, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Laughter filled her ears, something she hadn't heard in days. It was depressing to think that they were about to ruin all of this for them.

The first one to notice them was a boy about Percy's age with shaggy, brown hair and mischievous eyes that warned Hazel never to leave him unsupervised. When he first spotted the mist, he looked confused, but then his eyes landed on Nico, and he ran over.

"Nico! You're back! Are you with Annabeth? Did you find Percy? Is everyone okay? Where is everybody?"

A ghost of a smile played across Nico's lips. "One question at a time, Travis. No, I'm not with Annabeth. Yes, we found Percy."

"And? You didn't answer the most important questions! Don't hold out on me!"

Whatever flicker of a smile that was there before was gone now. Nico's face had hardened, and was now expressionless. At least to most people. Hazel could see how pained his eyes were, how much he was dreading this.

"You should probably call Chiron. He needs to hear this."

Travis's face went blank, eyes no longer gleaming with excitement. He knew something was wrong, but he had no clue how bad it really was.

When Chiron arrived, he too seemed to have high hopes which were immediately dashed by the person on the other end of the I.M. It wasn't Percy. Something had to be wrong. Still, he tried to hide his worry, no matter how his eyes betrayed him.

"Nico! It's good to see you. Is Percy there?

"That's what we need to talk about Chiron, but we'll get to him in a second. Let's start back a couple of weeks ago when Jason returned from his quest. As you have probably figured out, he's from Camp Jupiter. Percy was sent there where he picked up our quest from the other side. When he got there, I happened to be there as well. He unknowingly alerted me to Hera's plan, pushing me to go after the Doors myself."

Here, he was interrupted by a girl with brown hair and deep, green eyes. "So, he is alive?"

Nico nodded. "Yeah. He is."

He looked sideways at the rest of us, and repeated himself, alerting us that he still hasn't felt anything. Those two words sparked a hope within her. She hadn't felt death, either. Maybe… They would be alright.

If the other demigods thought this odd, they didn't let on, so Nico continued. "I went to the Underworld. 'Figured if the Doors of Death were anywhere down there, I would be able to find them. Zeus knows I was an idiot. Gaea found me. I thought because I was a son of Hades, the pit wouldn't draw me in. That I wouldn't feel the same pull other beings do when they go there, but she got me. She… She pulled me into Tartarus and overwhelmed me. The monsters are strong down there. Stronger than I thought they would be considering they were sent there for punishment."

The boy who first started the conversation- No, wait, this one was slightly taller. Twins? – spoke up, but seemed to regret it when he was finished. "What was it like?"

Nico's eyes got a distant look, and Hazel was afraid for him. What would reliving this experience do to him? He had barely survived it once. But, that was it, she realized. He hadn't just survived it once. Every day, every second since he'd come out he had been in there, trapped in his head. The thing about memories, though, is there's no escaping them. Now, she would find out what they were.

"E-everything was dark. But it wasn't a dark like you had just turned out the lights; it was as if someone had come with a vacuum and sucked every bit of hope and light right out of the pit. The air itself seemed heavy with the shadows, pushing down around you, daring you to give in. I managed to walk a small ways in before they found me and knocked me out. When I woke, it felt like something had ignited a fire inside all of my organs. My entire body screamed with pain, and it wasn't from external injuries. There was fire. Lots of fire. I could hear shrieks filling the air.

When they forced me to walk, some of the things I saw… Monsters. Most of them were missing body parts, or had gaping wounds still bleeding or weeping anew. Blood flowed like there was no end to it, and in a way, I suppose there wasn't. These monsters don't bleed in the real world because they do it all there. Some of them were reforming right before my eyes. Dried blood bubbled, slowly growing into new flesh as organs and bone were covered and the beasts screeched in agony.

People would go insane down there. Not only from the pain, but from the things they were forced to witness. When I made it out… I couldn't stand. Thinking wasn't an option. All I could do was scream and feel. Feel more than I ever have, yet less than I ever thought I would. It's… It's hard to describe. But it was awful. Then, I was trapped in a jar to starve until these guys came and got me."

Hazel was reeling with the horror of what was just described to her. How had he lived through that? And now, Percy and Annabeth were down there? Oh, gods help them.

No one could say anything. They were all gaping at Nico. That's when Hazel realized what a toll telling all of that had taken on him. His face had gone pale again, and his hands were visibly shaking. She moved closer to him, allowing him to place a hand on her shoulder for support. It seemed that as the tale came out, so did his energy. He leaned heavily on her, trying to look sturdier than he was. Finally, Chiron broke the silence. "What happened then?"

"Turns out Annabeth had some personal quest from Athena and had to go face Arachne. When we got there, Annabeth was pretty beat up, but she had defeated the spider mistress and found a statue that could help us make peace with the Romans. We were loading it up when… When Arachne pulled her down into Tartarus with her. Percy grabbed her and refused to let go as they both fell. I'm sorry."

Unlike when Nico had told about his time, he was bombarded with a hundred questions at once. Everyone was curious as to if they had found them, and what their plan was, and if they were still alive. Nico's eyes had darkened even more, so Hazel had mercy on him and answered the three biggest ones for him. He had done enough.

"We haven't gone after them yet. We wanted to update you guys first. We are on our way to the Doors of Death now where they will meet us, and, as far as we know, they are still alive."

Chiron nodded. "Thank you. For telling us. Contact us again when you have more news. Good luck"

The I.M. ended. And Nico passed out.


End file.
